4.02.2009

Hohn hohn hohn...*

Oh wow, I find this really funny. A (French) group of scientists recently published in the Journal of Food Science an article titled "Optimization of Gluten-Free Formulations for French-Style Breads" (or, trying to make a decent gluten-free baguette). Now, I know first-hand that current gluten-free French bread is terrible and desparately needs optimization. However, can't we leave that job to the awesome and smart GF bakers out there and let the scientists try to find a cure for Celiac Disease instead?

As someone who reads scientific journals regularly, I found this one hilarious. It has an abstract, materials and methods, results, statistical analyses, AND discussion! But its tested variables were things like, "crumb softness" and "crust hue." I mean, look at this figure...I hope you don't have to be a scientist to find this funny:

And, for all their super-sciencey analyses, they didn't even do a taste test! It is, however, one of their future directions:

"In addition to this physical characterization (specific volume, hardness, gas cell distribution, crust color, and bread dry matter), sensory analysis [a.k.a. taste test] is now underway to evaluate the acceptance of this formulation by a panel of consumers."

Because really, all that matters is how it ranks on the yumminess index.